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1989 problems

FaultScore report

1989 Pontiac Sunbird problems

Owners have filed 16 complaints about the 1989 Pontiac Sunbird with NHTSA between 1995 and 2005. The largest single group is the engine & cooling.

Read the complaints What breaks Worst years for the Pontiac Sunbird

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Not graded

Too few complaints, or too short a model run, to compare fairly.

How this is worked out

The numbers

Complaints

Crashes reported

Fires reported

Injuries reported

How 1989 compares with every other Pontiac Sunbird

Click any bar to open that year's report.

1 8 4 6 9 4 16 15 30 42 50 51 1 5 4 2 3 3

79 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks on a 1989 Pontiac Sunbird

Every complaint is filed against a part. Follow any row for the complaints about that part alone.

Engine & Cooling 5 31.3%

Electrical System 3 18.8%

0 crashes, 1 fires

Fuel & Propulsion 2 12.5%

Median failure at 167,000 miles

Other & Unspecified 1 6.3%

Equipment & Accessories 1 6.3%

Seat Belts 1 6.3%

Brakes 1 6.3%

Airbags 1 6.3%

1 crashes, 0 fires

Transmission & Drivetrain 1 6.3%

When owners complained

A spike years after the car went on sale usually means a part wearing out on schedule across the whole fleet — the kind of pattern no single owner can see from inside their own car.

Jan 1995 peak 6 Apr 2005

NHTSA investigations into the 1989 Pontiac Sunbird

An investigation is the step before a recall: the agency has seen enough complaints to look into a pattern itself. An open one means it thinks something may be wrong and nothing has been fixed yet.

PE93090 Opened 8 Oct 1993 Closed 28 Feb 1994 ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES

EA92024 Opened 26 Jun 1992 Closed 31 Jan 1994 VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:LINKAGES

STICKING THROTTLE

Recalls on the 1989 Pontiac Sunbird

A complaint is one owner's allegation. A recall is the point at which the manufacturer or a regulator agreed the defect is real and dangerous enough to fix for free — however old the car is.

Canada — Transport Canada

Canada runs its own recall programme, and its campaigns do not always mirror the American ones.

Recall 1989011 20 Jan 1989 2,353 units in Canada

Fuel System

SMALL CREASES ON THE UNDERSIDE OF THE FUEL TANK MAY FATIGUE AND CRACK RESULTING IN A FUEL LEAK. IF THE LEAK IS UNDETECTED AND THERE IS AN EXTERNAL SOURCE OF IGNITION, A FIRE COULD RESULT. CORRECTION: VEHICLES WILL BE INSPECTED AND FUEL TANKS REPLACED AS REQUIRED.

Recalls cover specific build ranges, so check your own vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls or, in Canada, Transport Canada.

Complaints that involved harm

Reports where the owner recorded a crash, a fire, an injury or a death.

Filed 22 Apr 2002 MT Vernon, IL Crash

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

WHILE TRAVELING ON HIGHWAY ANOTHER VEHICLE VEERED INTO CONSUMER'S VEHICLE ANDDUAL AIRBAGS DIDN'T DEPLOY. DEALERSHIP WAS AWARE OF PROBLEM.

NHTSA complaint #8008297 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Filed 27 Jan 1995 Grand Island, NY Fire

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:FRONT UNDERHOOD

ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRE: WHILE DRIVING FREEWAY, HEARD BANG; NOTICED SMOKE; PULLED OVER; ENGINE ENGULFED WITH FIRE; NO WARNING. TT

NHTSA complaint #959229 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

The most recent complaints

In the owners' own words, exactly as filed with NHTSA.

Filed 14 Apr 2005 at 167,000 miles Ventura, IA

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY

FUEL TANK DEVELOPED CRACKS AND THERE WERE SIGN OF LEAKAGE AT THE SEAMS. RECALL 88V189000 WAS ISSUED, HOWEVER THE CONSUMER VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED DUE TO VIN. *AK

NHTSA complaint #10117851 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Filed 22 Apr 2002 MT Vernon, IL Crash

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

WHILE TRAVELING ON HIGHWAY ANOTHER VEHICLE VEERED INTO CONSUMER'S VEHICLE ANDDUAL AIRBAGS DIDN'T DEPLOY. DEALERSHIP WAS AWARE OF PROBLEM.

NHTSA complaint #8008297 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Filed 23 Jun 2000 West Hartford, CT

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP

I WAS PROMICED ALL THESE THINGS BUT HE IGNORED ME AND I HAVE BEEN ENDED UP WITH A PIECE OF JUNK THAT I PAID $800 AND HAVE PUT OVER $500 INTO IT I WANT TO KEEP THE CAR BUT THERE ARE MAJOR THINGS THAT NEED TO BE FIXED AND I EVEN HAVE A WRITTEN CONTRACT I CALLED MY LOCAL DMV AND EVEN WENT DOWN THERE BUT THEY HAVE HAD TOO MANY COMPAINTS ON THIS GUY AND THEY CANT HANDLE MY CASE AT THIS TIME I WOULD JUST LIKE HIM TOO EITHER SEND ME TOO A PLACE OR SEND ME THE MONEY AFTER I GET QOUTES ON THE PROBLEMS I THINK THE COST WOULD BE A TOTAL OF AROUND $1000 OR JUST GIVE ME WHAT I PUT INTO THE CAR PLUS WHAT I PAYED FOR IT AND I WOULD BE HAPPY THAT WOULD BE AROUND $1500. *NO SAFETY DEFECT LISTED.